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A senior advisor to Nigel Farage reportedly proposed a method to circumvent UK electoral law in order to secure a £500,000 donation from a foreign source for Reform UK, as revealed by undercover footage aired on Channel 4. The footage captures Dan Jukes meeting with an individual posing as the UK-resident son of a wealthy American businessman. According to electoral regulations, only UK-registered voters or companies registered in the UK can legally donate to political parties. While the son would qualify as a permissible donor, the American father would not.
The undercover operation was conducted by Verbatim Investigations, a group established by journalists previously linked to the Centre for Climate Reporting. Channel 4 News confirmed the authenticity of the video material before deciding to broadcast it. Reform UK has denied any misconduct, describing the footage as part of “a hoax perpetuated by foreign funded climate change activists.” In the recording, the reporter, acting as the son, expresses concern that his father would be unable to make a lawful donation. Jukes responds outside a Westminster pub by hinting, “you do realise that you can do it?” suggesting that the donation could be made in the son’s name even though the funds would originate from the American father.
Jukes further comments in the footage, “Actually that does strike me as a solution,” and claims the party has employed this approach multiple times before, although this part of the conversation is partially censored. “That’s one of the ways in which we do it,” he explains. In response to the revelations, Reform UK has initiated an internal probe into Jukes and has not confirmed whether he remains a party spokesperson. Additional footage shows a meeting in Clacton, Essex, including the undercover reporter, the actor portraying his American father, Jukes, and Farage himself. Discussing the arrangement, Farage insists, “it’s all above board,” while the “son” outlines that he would be the registered donor with his father transferring the funds to him. Reform’s Head of Policy, James Orr, is also subject to internal investigation.
Earlier in the Channel 4 report, Orr is seen proposing that the undercover reporter’s supposed father might fund opinion polls to support Reform UK’s campaign efforts. The polling, amounting to £18,000 plus VAT, was suggested to be billed to the undercover reporter. Channel 4 states that Reform UK commissioned three polls totaling £32,500, without disclosing the source of funding to the public. Under electoral law, failure to reveal such funding or accepting foreign donations is illegal. Reform UK maintains that the organization was targeted by a hoax conducted by “foreign-funded, climate change activists” and asserts its vetting processes for donors are approved by the Electoral Commission. The party also criticized the investigative group, Verbatim Investigations, and its founder, Lawrence Carter, for producing heavily edited videos.
An Electoral Commission spokesperson emphasized the legal requirement for political parties to report all permissible donations over £11,180 and impermissible donations over £500, stating that any attempts to evade donation controls should be referred to police authorities. The Metropolitan Police confirmed they are monitoring media reports regarding potential breaches of donation laws linked to political polling and are evaluating the situation, though no formal investigation has yet begun. Efforts to reach Dan Jukes for comment have been made
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